Evangeline Lilly Opens Up About Battling Clinical Depression

The former star reveals she suffered from the illness a couple years ago.

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Evangeline Lilly opened up about her battle with clinical depression during a promotional event for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. "I have battled clinical depression and have come out of the other side," Lilly told reporters. "I've been free of it for many years now. Finding the place in my own mind and heart to win that battle without using medication, finding the place within myself where I could be alive again, that was one of the biggest challenges I've faced."

Lilly explained that switching to a largely organic diet while filming Lost in Hawaii improved her mental state. "Going from eating whatever to eating primarily organic food, I was astounded what a difference that made. After about a year or two years, I started to feel something physically lift out of my brain, and I believe it was all the chemicals I was probably ingesting [before]. I would rather pretend to be happy than allow myself to be miserable. It's sort of the idea of 'fake it till you make it'," Lilly expanded. "Put on a smile until you believe your own smile. That's a big part of it."